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Politics

Notre-Dame was restored in five years and under budget. But the Palace of Westminster? No chance | Simon Jenkins

Estimated costs have already risen from £3.5bn to £40bn. The PM should bite the bullet and relocate MPs outside London – permanently What is the most reactionary public institution in Britain, the most outdated and immune to reform? It is the one that orders us to keep changing: parliament. It is also the most wildly extravagant. When the issue is hospitals, prisons and care homes, austerity is often the answer. When it comes to its own premises, only the best will do. Big Ben has recently been restored at a cost of £80m and the entire Palace of Westminster has been reroofed for another £80m.

The Guardian
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Politics

Minister tells energy suppliers to do more to help households tackle unpaid bills this winter

Bosses from Great Britain’s biggest energy companies called to meeting as part of government’s debt relief plan An energy minister has told the bosses of Great Britain’s biggest energy suppliers to do more to help households get on top of their unpaid energy bills this winter, before the government spends up to £2.5bn to help write off the country’s record high debts. Energy bosses were summoned to a roundtable meeting on Thursday to discuss the government’s plan to pay down the energy debts of about 2.4m of the hardest-hit households. Continue reading...

The Guardian
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